Steel Dynasty - Chapter 542

[Chapter 542 Preparations before the war]

Li San recalled the information about Pengzhou in his mind.

Xiao Ming was determined to conquer Pengzhou, so as a secret guard collecting intelligence, he naturally had to investigate Pengzhou first.

Since he became the commander of the Secret Guard, he has gradually come into contact with the informants of other feudal kings. However, generally speaking, he is very confident in the Secret Guard he established. After all, they have many classic books to study.

In the past two years, they have learned in practice and established a mature internal organization. They have also cultivated some outstanding secret guards.

“Your Highness, there are many mountains around Pengzhou, and Pengzhou City is basically in the basin terrain that Your Highness often talks about. In the opinion of Xianguan, due to the mountains, it is difficult for this large-scale army to assemble outside the city and pose a threat to the city. Moreover, There is Bianshui outside the city of Pengzhou, and the two rivers of Sishui merge and flow southward. Now these two rivers have become the natural moat of Pengzhou. Generally speaking, Pengzhou is surrounded by mountains on both sides and water on the north. “

Xiao Ming frowned when he heard this .

Frowning, Li San was talking about the geographical location of Xuzhou in his technology library.

Historically, the two rivers Bianshui and Sishui have been invaded by the Yellow River for a long time. Due to the restrictions of the mountains around Xuzhou, the river courses have always been very stable. The Bianshui comes from the west, and the Sishui flows from Xiao Ming’s fiefdom into the vicinity of Pengzhou City. .

Now these two rivers are both moats and waterways for Pengzhou City. The canal from the Great Yu State passing through Pengzhou City passes through the Bianshui and Sishui rivers. Now the merchant ships of the Qingzhou Chamber of Commerce have to pass through here when going south.

To put it simply, you can go north to Qilu along the Sishui River, directly to Youzhou; along the Bian River you can go south to Jinling and Yangzhou, and even enter the Yangtze River to reach the fiefdom of the King of Chu; from the west you can reach Chang’an, Luoyang and other Guanzhong areas, and its location can It is said to be a hub connecting north, south, east and west.

It is for this reason that Xiao Ming’s first reaction after King Wei refused to form an alliance was to capture Pengzhou City. After all, such a place that is easy to defend but difficult to attack and is a transportation hub is really disgusting in the hands of King Wei, because it means that he You will always face the risk of King Wei stabbing the chrysanthemum.

And if he takes this place, it will be equivalent to tearing open the door of Wei. From then on, Wei will be flat, allowing him to gallop and easily switch from defense to offense.

“Your Highness, in addition to the terrain of Pengzhou City being easy to defend and difficult to attack, the people’s customs are also extremely tough. The people of Pengzhou are as brave and good at fighting as any other people in Qi. Moreover, there are 50,000 elite troops stationed in Pengzhou City. These soldiers are all local people of Pengzhou. Many of the military generals are here from the local wealthy families in Pengzhou, and with the addition of the private soldiers of these wealthy families, the number of troops in Pengzhou City is not small.” Li Sanyue said, becoming more and more worried.

Not only is Pengzhou City easy to defend but difficult to attack, the troops in the city are not weak either.

“Pengzhou has been a battleground for military strategists since ancient times. I understand that the soldiers are strong. Because of this, I have the need to capture Pengzhou. Otherwise, if King Zhao and the barbarians attack, I will be attacked from both sides.” Xiao Ming His expression was determined.

Li San nodded solemnly. When Xiao Ming said this, he felt that Pengzhou City was really important.

After a pause, he continued: “Your Highness, I also learned about the situation of the local wealthy families. The largest family in Pengzhou City is the Mi family. Now the eldest son of the head of the Mi family, Mi Wenyi, is the chief historian of the Prince of Wei. In addition, the second largest family is the Lu family…”

Xiao Ming nodded while listening. Li San had very detailed information about Pengzhou City, and now he knew Pengzhou City very well.

“You collect all this information into a book. In addition, I need a detailed topographic map of Pengzhou City.” Xiao Ming pondered for a moment. As the saying goes, knowing the enemy and knowing yourself will always win the battle. He must have detailed information before the war comes.

But this was only part of the work. He asked Li San: “How do the local wealthy families view this king?”

“As His Highness thought, the wealthy families in Pengzhou are very hostile to His Highness and often make disrespectful remarks. This is also I am worried that if His Highness attacks Pengzhou City, these local wealthy families will fight to the death.”

Xiao Ming smiled bitterly. He was a bit ruthless in order to eradicate the wealthy families that bound Qingzhou, but now his actions have become the eyes of these wealthy families. It was a treasonous and evil act, but even so, he still did not regret his decision at that time.

Great Chongqing has been numb for too long under the rule of these famous families. If these cancers cannot be completely eradicated, they will continue to suck the blood of Great Chongqing.

Thinking of this, he made a decision in his heart, so he said to Li San: “The rich family is like this,

but what about the common people?” “The common people praise your highness very much.” Li San said with a smile, he was also very proud of this matter.

“Then can the secret guards be allowed to incite the people to rebel?” Xiao Ming asked.

When Li San came, he understood that Xiao Ming was looking for him. He said, “Go back to your highness, this matter is difficult. The people have been living under the oppression of the wealthy families for a long time, or the local people have become vassals of the wealthy families.” , They dare not act rashly when they are not sure that

His Highness can attack Pengzhou City.” “Well, in that case, you can try again when I attack Pengzhou City,” Xiao Ming said, since Li San said so. It’s to bribe some people.

He did not expect these people to determine the outcome of the war, but it would be good if they could distract the Pengzhou City army.

After mastering the detailed information, Xiao Ming asked Li San to go back.

Three days later, Li San returned again. At this time, he handed him a complete topography and army deployment map of Pengzhou City, and he asked the craftsmen of the Equipment Department to make a sand table overnight.

The next day, he summoned the generals involved in the siege to review the map of Pengzhou City and formulate a detailed attack plan. He did not want to make any mistakes in such an important battle.

Like Xiao Ming, Niu Ben and others immediately frowned after looking at the map.

“Your Highness, this Pengzhou City seems to be a tough one. We can only attack Pengzhou City from the front. Moreover, the land in front of Pengzhou City is narrow and is very unsuitable for the formation of soldiers.” Niu Ben analyzed.

Luo Xin said directly: “Pengzhou City has neither artillery nor musketeers. It seems that King Wei regards the purchased equipment as a treasure. In this case, we will attack Shanhaiguan and use mortar cannons to launch lime bombs. Destroy the city with explosives.”

“Luo Xin is right, just use the artillery.” Lu Fei’s temper has not changed, he is direct and straightforward.

Niu Ben snorted and said: “To put it simply, there is a very wide moat outside Pengzhou City. You can tell me how to bury explosives.”

Luo Xin didn’t look at the sand table carefully just now, but when he saw it, he suddenly giggled. stand up.

Niu Ben turned to Xiao Ming at this time and said to His Highness: “General, I have an idea. Please ask Your Highness to mobilize two to three warships to help in the battle.”

(End of this chapter)